Can You Hear Me?
by disneyfan421
Summary: In an attempt to save Roland, Regina is struck by a curse and the possibility of losing her leads to a confession from a certain bandit. Outlaw Queen


_**Tumblr prompt by killians-tinkabelle**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, they are the property of Adam Horowitz and Eddy Kitsis and ABC. **_

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"Regina!" His voice sounded distant and frantic which didn't make sense because he had been by her side moments before. It took her a moment to realize that she was no longer standing with the group, instead lying on the ground like she had just been run over by a bulldozer-at least, that's how she felt. Warm hands cupped her face and she felt herself leaning into the touch, attempting to absorb the heat.

"Regina!" He repeated, louder and more concerned than before. "Can you hear me?" Could she hear him, he was practically shouting in her ear. She'd have to be deaf to not hear him. She attempted to nod her head in consent but to no avail. She felt absolutely drained, like the life was literally being sucked out of her and the more she fought, the harder it became to breath.

The warm hands left her face, one wrapping around her neck and the other around her waist, attempting to shake her awake, "Regina, you are stronger than this. The strongest woman I have ever met. Just…" His voice seemed to break for a moment and despite the weakness she was feeling, her heart clenched. "Just stay with me a little longer." She wanted to nod, wanted to open her mouth and tell him that she was fine, that everything was going to be okay but she couldn't seem to form a coherent sentence.

After a few moments, and with more strength than it should have taken, she opened her eyes. Images flashed in front of her, blond hair, blue eyes, a relieved smile that took her breath away; not that she would ever admit that to his face. She took in a deep breath, the smell of pine trees invading her senses.

"That's it, Regina, keep your eyes focused on me." Of course he would direct her attention to him, typical. "You know…" she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper, "Not everything is about you bandit?" The term was said with less spite than normal and dare she say it, endearing. He let out a low chuckle and brushed a stray hair out of her face. "Well, if you stay with me a bit longer, I promise to make one day all about you" the playful smirk sent a warm sensation through her whole body, right down to her toes and she smiled weakly at him. "Just one day, I'm so flattered at your sacrifice."

"Yes well, you've caught me in a generous mood. Saving my son and all, figure I owe you at least one day." His face seemed to relax a bit at the mention of his son, safe and sound thanks to her intervention. She smiled at the thought of the young boy, how much she had grown to care for him in such a short time, and maybe even, by default, his father. Robin looked up suddenly, seemingly distracted by a distant voice. Vaguely, she recognized it as Gold's but couldn't make out what he was saying given how far away he was. Not that she needed to, the grim expression on the bandit's face said it all.

Robin shook his head adamantly and turned his attention back to her, "I refuse to believe that. I refuse to believe that I can't save her from whatever _this_ is." His eyes met hers and she could swear they were filled with regret, for what she had no idea. Meeting her maybe, getting caught up in everything between she and her newly discovered half-sister, whatever it was, she was unsure of.

"That, dearie" Gold began, "Is a curse, a rather powerful one at that." She let out a sigh of relief, a curse. She had saved Roland from a curse of some kind, that was a decision she could stand by. "So unless you know how to bring her dead fiancé back to life I would say there is no way." Dead fiancé? She wasn't entirely sure what Daniel had to do with any of this. Gold's riddles were difficult enough to decipher when she was fully functional, but now, it was impossible to even begin working out the imp's thought process. Robin on the other hand, seemed to catch on to Gold's meaning and he looked down at her again and she saw his eye brows shoot up as if an idea just occurred to him.

"Maybe I won't have to bring him back…" He began, his hand cupping her cheek, "Regina…" he began, a smile beginning to form. "You are…stubborn and frustrating and you really don't understand the concept of no or stay away from my son." A small smile appeared on her face, remembering all the times Robin had threatened to shoot an arrow through her heart if she went near Roland. It had become a running joke to her, Roland would sneak a visit and Robin would give yet another empty threat. "And to be quite honest, I have never seen someone completely disregard threats on their life the way you do."

"If this is some sort of pep talk bandit, you're going to have to try harder than that." She mumbled, mentioning a few qualities was not going to make her feel stronger anytime soon. It would only postpone the inevitable.

He shook his head, "This isn't a pep talk your majesty. It's a confession." This time, it was her eyebrows that shot up in confusion. "The truth is, when I first met you, I couldn't wait for you to get out of my life. But now that I've come to know you, the strong, stubborn, beautiful woman that you truly are, well, I can't imagine having a life without you in it."

"What exactly are you saying?" She said softly, not believing for one single moment that this man, this person who had been so insistent on hating her could grow to feel anything more.

"I'm saying I'm going to kiss you Regina." He said and he leaned in, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. The warmth spread through her slowly, the fog in her mind beginning to clear, and the strength returning to her body. After a moment she leaned into him, parting her lips slightly and reaching her hands up to thread her fingers through his hair.

A soft cough broke the two of them apart, but nothing seemed to break the smile that was on either of their faces. "Well then, I guess that answers that question" Gold said, nodding at the pair.

"So it does." Regina smiled, glancing around the tight circle that had formed around the pair. "Does that mean I get more than one day that's all about me?" she teased. He cocked his head to the side, seeming to contemplate it for a moment before answering, "I think it can be considered in the future."

_Future, _it had never really been something Regina had taken into consideration. Since Daniel, since the curse, she had never imagined that she would have a future, much less a happy one. Now though, it didn't seem like to terrible a thing.

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_**Hope that you all enjoyed it. Reviews are loved. **_


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